Facebook will change its News Feed algorithm to discourage oversharers of clickbait stories

The latest change to Facebook’s News Feed algorithm won’t affect most users but it’s an important step in trying to stop the spread of fake news and clickbait stories. The social network is going to limit the reach of people known to continuously post links to sensationalist sites and other spam content. According to Facebook this’ll affect a “tiny group” of people (around 0.1%) who share over 50 posts a day. This will also just affect the links they share and not their photos or other posts.

"Our research shows that there is a tiny group of people on Facebook book who routinely share vast amounts of public posts per day, effectively spamming people's feeds," said Adam Mosseri, Facebook's vice president for the News Feed, in a blog post. Other efforts to reduce spam on its service include giving lower prominence to links that have pages full of deceptive ads and the deemphasizing of stories with clickbait-like headlines.

Source: Fortune

Twitter reportedly tries out tool to flag fake news

The fight against fake news is something social networks have to contend with. Facebook is taking a lot of fire for this but Twitter isn’t without this issue, too, add on the abuse against women and minorities on the service. But Twitter seems to be doing something about it. Or at least they’re working on it. Sources have told the Washington Post that Twitter has a prototype feature that lets you flag tweets that contain fake news and harmful content.

There aren’t solid plans on whether this tool will be released but the idea behind it is that users will get a flag option in the drop-down menu that appears with tweets. And while Twitter won’t commit to an official launch of the feature, it’s something the service really needs. As TNW points out, the number of Twitter bots that are on the service have the capability to spread fake news quickly and rapidly.

Source: 9to5 Google

Canadian Reviewer Weekly Roundup 06/25-07/01

Review: Google Home

YouTube’s set to introduce dynamic video resizing on mobile app

Google will stop scanning your emails for targeted ads

Instagram is testing out a favorite friends list

Canada's 150th anniversary, EventMobi commits 150 company days for volunteer experiences

Great shows on Netflix to explore and inspire kids this summer break

MEC launches new website that inspires city folks to get outside

There is going to be an SNES Classic Edition

iOS 11 Public Beta is now available for download

Ecommerce trends to watch in 2017

Kobo Emerging Writer Prize Winners Announced

The Rec Room brings amusement, gaming and dining experiences to Toronto

Android Pay now available to American Express customers in Canada

Apple's 'A Portrait of Canada,' shot on iPhone film focuses on country's inclusivity and diversity

2017 Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Challenge announces winning schools

Experiencing the LG Signature OLED W7 4K TV

Ancestry.ca reveals Canada's diverse 'DN-eh'

Nikon Canada hosts Night Photography tutorial at Mississauga HQ

Review: Motorola Moto Z2 Play

Facebook’s Aquila drone successfully completes second test flight

Marvel's 'Inhumans' gets its first trailer

Volkswagen wants cars to communicate with each other starting 2019

Netflix’s ‘Stranger Things’ gets Hall H panel at Comic-Con

Public beta of macOS High Sierra is now live

A new Nissan Leaf is headed our way on September 6th

A new Nissan Leaf is headed our way on September 6th

Japanese automaker Nissan is now ready to unveil the second-generation of its all-electric hatchback, the Nissan Leaf. The new Leaf will be making its debut on September 6^th and Nissan teased this announcement on Twitter with an image that shows Nissan’s badge and what looks like a portion of the car’s grille. The new Leaf is expected to take style inspiration from Nissan’s IDS Concept, a five-door showcar from 2015 with autonomous drive tech and next-gen electric propulsion. Nissan has said as much that its ProPilot driver-assist technology will be coming to the leaf. This semi-autonomous system will manage things like acceleration, braking, and steering within a single lane on a freeway to help lower driver stress and increase safety.

There is hope that this model—which is expected to be a 2018 model—would improve on its 107-mile range offering, especially with more all-electric vehicles offering better mileage on it. We’re going to have to wait a few months then to get full details.

The new Nissan LEAF
Premieres September 6, 2017 #Nissan #LEAF pic.twitter.com/tWGRIrTMkS

— Nissan (@Nissan) June 29, 2017

Source: CNET + Slash Gear